Robert Prochnik

Born:	11-15-1915
Faculty:	Law School
Category:	Expelled student

Robert PROCHNIK, born on November 15th, 1915 in Vienna/Austria (entitled residency ('heimatberechtigt') for Vienna/Austria, Citizenship: Austria), son of Leon Prochnik (salesman), lived in Wien 14, Mariahilfer Straße 191, was enrolled finally in the fall term 1937/38 at the Law School in the 1st year of his studies. From October 1938 he worked at the Jewish Community of Vienna and was a close collaborator of Benjamin Murmelstein. In 1941 he wrote a comparative report about the situation of Jews in Vienna and Berlin. Allthough hated for his militant performance he used his organisatorial and logistic talent to make it possible for hundreds of Jews to emigrate to abroad, the Soviet Union or the Far-East-Route and France. On September 28, 1942 he and his father Leon (Leib) Prochnik (born 1886) and his stepmother Karoline Hauser (born 1895) were accused of "Schleichhandel", arrested and deported to Theresienstadt (eldest: Benjamin Murmelstein) at the end of October 1942. Robert Prochnik survived and returned to Vienna in 1945.

After the end of the National-Socialist regime Robert Prochnik was blamed for working in the Israelitic Community Vienna and his collaboration with the "Zentralstelle für juedische Auswanderung" and that he prepared and dispatched transports of deportation. After two processes in 1948 and 1954 without results, the files were closed in 1955. Robert Prochnik deceased in 1977. Lit.: Doron Rabinovici Instanzen der Ohnmacht, 2000, 168f.; DÖW-Nicht mehr anonym. Erkennungsdienstlichen Kartei der Gestapo Wien; LBI/J 427, Prochnik-report; Forschungsprojekt Gabriele Anderl, Robert Prochnik, eine Biografie.

Herbert Posch